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Lone Tree City Council approves pedestrian bridge

Out of four architectural renderings of pedestrian bridge designs, the leaf design was chosen by the Lone Tree City Council.  The Council selected the design that most city residents chose.

A new bridge will connect pedestrians and bicyclists from the south side of Lincoln Avenue to the north side safely without disrupting the east-west flow of traffic.



By Patte Smith; architectural rendering and map courtesy of the City of Lone Tree

In a June 16 closed-door meeting, the Lone Tree City Council approved a motion 4 -1 to direct staff to move forward with actions necessary to complete property acquisition, final design, and construction of the leaf pedestrian bridge across Lincoln Avenue.  

Mayor Jim Gunning, the five Lone Tree city council members, architect Curt Fentress, Public Works Director John Cotten and Community Outreach Coordinator Kristen Knoll attended the meeting.  Several Lone Tree residents, all of whom were in favor of the bridge development were allowed to attend the opening discussion of the meeting prior to being dismissed.

Cotten and Knoll have held numerous community meetings, including a town hall phone meeting, during which they encouraged residents to provide input and opinions on the bridge.  “The input we received from all of our meetings was predominately in support of the project,” said Knoll.  “Safety was the number one concern of the residents.”

“About 65,000 cars a day drive on Lincoln,” noted Knoll.  “The stop and start of the signals at pedestrian crossings affects the flow of traffic in a negative way.  The bridge will ensure pedestrian and bicyclists’ safety, improve the flow of traffic on Lincoln, link the north and south areas of Lone Tree, and connect businesses on both sides.”   The bridge will also link to the North Willow Creek Trail and a trail that connects to the East-West Regional Trail.  Pedestrians and bicyclists will have exclusive access to the bridge – no motorized vehicles will be permitted.

Fentress Architects’ leaf design for the bridge was also approved at the council meeting.  During the rest of 2015, they will continue finalizing the building plans and the City will work on acquiring the land on the north side of Lincoln where the bridge will be constructed.  Coventry Development donated the land on the south side of Lincoln.

Lone Tree’s funding partners include South Suburban Parks and Recreation District –who pledged $1 million; Park Meadows Metro District – $1 million; Douglas County government – $1 million; and Coventry Development donated $500,000, along with its donation of the land.  Other metropolitan districts are also helping to fund the project.  The City of Lone Tree is applying for a grant from Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) to support these efforts.

While there is no official start date, construction on the bridge it is expected to begin in early 2016.   For more information and details about the pedestrian bridge project, visit www.cityoflonetree.com/pedestrianbridge.

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